Greenwich swimmers cruise past Staples

Published 7:48 pm, Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Thomas Dillinger of Greenwich goes off the block in the 200 freestyle event in the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

Thomas Dillinger of Greenwich goes off the block in the 200 freestyle event in the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

Chris Mombello of Staples swims the breaststroke leg of the 200 medley relay event in the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

Chris Mombello of Staples swims the breaststroke leg of the 200 medley relay event in the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

Max Wimer of Staples swims the backstroke leg during the 200 medley relay event in the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

Max Wimer of Staples swims the backstroke leg during the 200 medley relay event in the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

Iain Edmunson of Greenwich swims the breaststroke leg during the 200 medley relay event in the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013. less

Iain Edmunson of Greenwich swims the breaststroke leg during the 200 medley relay event in the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, ... more

Iain Edmunson of Greenwich swims the freestyle leg in the 200 IM event during the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

Iain Edmunson of Greenwich swims the freestyle leg in the 200 IM event during the boys high school swim meet between Greenwich High School and Staples High School at Greenwich, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

Coming off their biggest win of the season this past Saturday against Fairfield Prep the Greenwich High boys swimming team was riding high as it hosted Staples. The Cardinals avoided any letdown against the Wreckers, remaining sharp as ever with an impressive 122-63 victory.

According to GHS coach Terry Lowe, it is unreasonable to expect the Cards to perform with the same focus and energy against Staples that they displayed against Prep. That being said, Lowe was quite pleased with Wednesday's results.

"We swam a near perfect meet on Saturday and to ask these guys to recreate that mindset and intensity in a match we're favored to win is almost impossible," Lowe said. "Realistically we won't have that type of energy until states, but I am proud of how well the team performed today. We had a lot of guys swimming out of position and really showed our depth and versatility."

"Even though this meet didn't have the same atmosphere that the Prep meet did, we still knew we needed to get this win," Stotesbery said. "Today we had guys step into positions they are not used to swimming in and excel in those spots. That depth is a huge strength that we have and will definitely work to our advantage in the FCIAC Championships and the State Tournament."

After taking the first three events of the afternoon the Cardinals kept on rolling as Ed Moss (22.40) finished first in the 50 freestyle, Jeff Aselin (389.925) took top billing in diving, and Julian Fraser (56.57) posted the best 100 butterfly time of the day. It was a Greenwich sweep of the first six events before Jonathan Blansfield (50.67) gave Staples its first top time in the 100 freestyle. It was an encouraging sign for Staples coach Frisk Driscoll to see his team continue to battle against such a strong opponent.

"We came into this meet knowing that this is where the Championships are going to be held and with the understanding that we would be competing against a championship caliber team in Greenwich," Driscoll said. "I always say that there is a big difference between swimming fast and truly racing. Today, whether it was against Greenwich or against one another, we really raced."

The home team quickly got back on the winning track, notching victories in the 200 freestyle relay behind the efforts of Julian Fraser, Matt Fraser, Dillinger, and Moss who finished first in the with a time of 1:34.50. Dillinger also would go on to post the top 100 backstroke time of 59.27 before the team of Julian Fraser, Stotesbery, Edmundson, and Lewis wrapped up the first place finishes for Greenwich with a 3:27.62 time in the 400 freestyle relay. The Wreckers got solid performances from Daniel Williams who had the best 500 freestyle time of 4:58.75 while Ethan Hunter posted an impressive showing of 1:03.74 for first in the 100 breaststroke. And while the final score wasn't in their favor Driscoll believes his team is on the right path.

"As the season wears on and we get closer to the championship meets we need to clean up all the little details of our team from a mechanics point of view as well as physically," Driscoll said. "It's always a coaches hope to have their team performing at it's best in the biggest meet of the season and I think we'll get there."

As far as the Greenwich boys are concerned this season is all about one title.

"We have depth, talent, and young swimmers who are getting better every meet," Stotesbery said. "To be honest, anything short of the state title would be a disappointment to us all."

The Cardinals' next test will come on Friday when they travel to the Darien YMCA for a 3 p.m. meet with the Blue Wave while Staples will also compete on Friday in a 4 p.m. meet at Ridgefield.